Walk with me – a sparkling shoreline, salt-bleached and sand-etched fragments of natural and man-made matter. I fill my pockets, call my dog and walk home to sort my loot. A treasure hunt, a solo beach clean ritual, and my own alchemy.

My mixed media paintings and works on paper flow directly from my creative background in sculpture, set design, and life drawing, and are often highly-textured, dynamic and  theatrical. 

I am inspired by the ever-changing canvas of the natural world, particularly the Sussex coastline, and stories from myth and folklore. My recurring themes are flight, dance, mythic female deities, and the languages of love from Ancient Greece. Whether the work is abstract or more representational, I am always striving to capture how the subject makes me feel, rather than its likeness. 

My materials are a multi-layered concoction of my beach finds, recycled collage and more traditional art media. I often finish my paintings (and Giclee prints) with iridescent and metallic pigments – I see these as the final “sparks of ignition” that bring my work to life, reflecting the energy and sparkle of the shoreline, and the enduring power of transformation. 

Emma studied art and design at Wimbledon Art School and Kingston University, pursuing a career as a set designer for film and television. She has exhibited widely across the UK and as part of a celebration of French and English coastal artists in Ste Marguerite sur Mer.

Photo credit: Sorcha Bridge